GOOG: Congress Asks Page About ‘Glass’ Privacy Issues

By Tiernan Ray

The Wall Street Journal‘s Emir Efratithis evening reports on the site’s Digits blog that Google (GOOG) has received a letter from congressmen Joe Barton, Bobby Rush, Richard Nugent, Steve Chabot, John Barrow, Walter Jones, Heny Johnson, and Loretta Sanchez, asking for comment from CEO Larry Page as to what privacy measures are being put in place with respect to the “Google Glass” smart eyeware device, which is currently in early testing amongst a select group of individuals.

The letter, addressed from the bi-partisan Privacy Caucus to Page directly, states there have been a number of articles pointing out “the privacy implications,” including the ability to look at a person while wearing the glasses and see his or her personal details, such as home address.

The authors “are curious whether this new technology could infringe on the privacy of the average American.” The authors thereby ask for answers to the questions to be submitted to them in writing by June 14th:

How Google plans to prevent Google Glass from unintentially collecting data about the user/non-user without consent;

What protective steps is Google taking to protect the privacy of non-users when Google Glass is in use;

Whether it is true the product would be able to use facial recognition technology to unveil personal information about whomever and even some inanimate objects that the user is viewing;

Whether Google has considered making additions or refinements to its privacy policy;

What information Google might collect about a user of the device, and whether it would be obtained with or without consent;

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MAY 16, 2013 7:25 P.M.

Anonymous wrote:

Federal Law on Privacy Protection
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986)
Congress passed the Electronic Communications Privacy Act ("ECPA") to expand the scope of existing federal wiretap laws, such as the Wiretap Act, to include protection for electronic communications. ECPA expanded the privacy protections of the Wiretap Act in five significant ways:

1.ECPA broadened the scope of privileged communications to include all forms of electronic transmissions, including video, text, audio, and data.
2.ECPA eliminated the requirement that communications be transmitted via common carrier to receive legal protection.
3.ECPA maintained restrictions on the interception of messages in transmission and adds a prohibition on access to stored electronic communications.
4.ECPA responded to the Supreme Court's ruling in Smith v. Maryland (June 1979) that telephone toll records are not private and restricts law enforcement access to transactional information pertaining to users of electronic communication services.
5.ECPA broadened the reach of the Wiretap Act by restricting both government and private access to communications.

About Tech Trader Daily

Tech Trader Daily is a blog on technology investing written by Barron’s veteran Tiernan Ray. The blog provides news, analysis and original reporting on events important to investors in software, hardware, the Internet, telecommunications and related fields. Comments and tips can be sent to: techtraderdaily@barrons.com.